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COD4 Sniper Handbook

The Sniper Guide by Soapychicken

Firstly, let me take the time to thank you for looking at my Sniper Guide. I have taken the time to write this for the simple fact that people just get fascinated with the aspect of sniping, however only few can really take what it demands. Being a sniper is in fact one of the toughest jobs you can have in real life and in gaming. Why? Because not only do you have to focus on your actions, but anticipate what someone else's actions will be. Almost as if predicting the future. Let me tell you, if you make a mistake it can cost you your life. (Unless your in a video game, then just re-spawn and shut up.)

Let us begin.

What is a Sniper?

Well the dictionary defines it as follows:

Snip-er (sni-par) n.

1. A skilled military shooter detailed to spot and pick off an enemy soldier from a concealed place.
2. One who shoots at other people from a concealed place.

"So that is easy, to be considered a sniper all I have to do is spot and shoot people from somewhere that people can't see me."

Not exactly.

I understand this is a video game, however it has been modeled after real life scenarios and real life statistics. Such as MOA measuring and DROP resistance.

Weapon Descriptions

Allow me to give you a little background history on the rifles Call of Duty 4 has graced you with.

M40A3 Sniper Rifle - Remington 700 action, 24-inch 5 groove, 1:12" barrel in a McMillan A4 stock. (I, and obviously the Marine Corps, are convinced of the worth of that particular product.) It utilizes a "bombproof" D.D. Ross trigger guard, rings and rails. (The rail is the MilStd1913 now required on all new weapons.) Caliber for the A3 is still 7.62X51mm. Rifle without the can is 45-inches long and weighs 19.2 pounds. (A sniper rifle is heavy. It is supposed to be bomb proof, and more importantly, Marine proof.) The ammo used is M118LR, or in sniper parlance, AA11 (that is the DODIC). This is a recently upgraded round, utilizing the Sierra 175MK at a MV of 2670 fps. The AA11 ammo is giving sub-MOA out to 1000 yards.

Springfield M21 Sniper Rifle - The M21 sniper rifle is based on the M14 semi-automatic system, which itself is based on the World War 2-era M1 Garand with a few minor refinements to internal components and a 20-shot detachable box magazine. The M21 saw combat in the Vietnam War and proved itself a most reliable and accurate weapon system. The M21 is constructed with the utmost care and attention to individual components and fielded with a Leatherwood Redfield telescopic sight system with a built-in range finder.

(Remington 700) r700 Sniper Rifle - Remington manufactured its famous model 700 since 1962. This rifle is perhaps one most widely used across the USA as a bolt-action tactical rifle. This rifle traces its ancestry back to the British P14/US model 1917 Enfield. Starting with model 700BDL action, Remington adds a stainless-steel barrel and a carbon-fiber stock, then tunes the rifle for one-minute-of-angle accuracy using match grade ammo. This rifle design was (and is) a basis for many custom build tactical sniper rifles. The USMC (Marine Corps) was among the first to make model 700 action the basis for a precision sniper rifle. The original USMC M40 bolt-action sniper rifle used in Vietnam and into the late 1970s was built on a Remington Model 700BDL action. In fact, today's M40A1s are still being rebuilt on these same actions. Lather, when the US Army decided to switch from a semi-automatic to a bolt-action rifle, the Remington Model 700 action was chosen for the M24.

Dragunov SVD Sniper Rifle - Dragunov SVD was designed not as a "standard" sniper rifle in its Western meaning of the term. In fact, main role of the SVD in Soviet / Russian Army is to extend effective range of fire of every infantry squad up to about 600 meters and to provide special fire support. SVD is a lightweight and quite accurate (for it's class) rifle, cabable of semi-auto fire. First request for new sniper rifle was issued in 1958. In 1963 SVD (Snaiperskaya Vintovka Dragunova, or Dragunov Sniper Rifle) was accepted by Soviet Military. SVD can use any kind of standard 7.62x54R ammo, but primary round is specially developed for SVD sniper-grade cartridge with steel-core bullet. Every infantry squad in the Russian (Soviet) army had one man with SVD.SVD rifle is extremely reliable in all conditions, and designed for heavy use. It has backup adjustable iron sights as a standard option, as well as a bayonet mount (standard AK-47 bayonet type).

Barrett .50 Caliber Sniper Rifle - The Barrett Firearms company was founded by the Ronnie Barrett for a single purpose of building semi-automatic rifles chambered for powerful .50BMG ammunition, originally developed for and used in Browning M2HB heavy machine guns. Barrett began his work in early 1980s and first working rifles were available in 1982, hence the designation M82. Barrett continued to develop his rifle through 1980s, and developed improved M82A1 rifle by 1986. The first real success was the purchase of about 100 M82A1 rifles by the Sweden Army in 1989. Major success followed in 1990 - 1991, when US Military purchased numbers of the M82A1 during the operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm in Kuwait and Iraq. About 125 rifles were initially bought by US Marine Corps, orders from US Army and Air Force followed soon. The M82A1 is known for US Military as the SASR - "Special Applications Scoped Rifle", and it was and still is used as an anti-materiel weapon and EOD (explosive ordnance disposal) tool. The long effective range along with high energy and availability of highly effective ammunition such as API and Raufoss M213 allows for effective operations against targets like radar cabins, trucks, parked aircrafts and so on. M82 also can be used to defeat enemy snipers or criminals from standoff range or when targets are behind the cover, but the anti-personnel work is not a major application for Barrett M82 (or any other .50BMG rifle, for that matter).

Excellent, well now that we know our guns we can get to know our friends "The Perks." The Perks are what allow us to gain special advantage while using combinations that best suit a distance killer.

Category 1 Perks:
- Bomb Squad - Ability to see nearby enemy explosives(Not one that I would use, however if you are a full-out scout/sniper I could see you using it to disable and or call out bombs.)

- C4 x 2 - Remote detonation explosive(All though fun in certain games like Ground War or Domination, not many peoples first choice for being a sniper.)

- Claymore x 2 - Trip activated explosive mine(A heavy favorite for snipers, considering it gives you cover from areas you can't cover yourself such as doorways or staircases behind you. Sneaky little sniper killers hate these, since they alarm snipers that someone is behind them if the sniper recognizes that one has just been tripped.)

- RPG-7 x 2 - Rocket Launcher with 2 rockets(The helicopters nightmare. These little sticks of heaven can aide you if your heavy infantry. As a sniper they aren't so great considering you have to leave cover most times, as well as leaving a smoke trail from where it was shot. Almost like an exploding flare of death.)

- Special Grenades x 3 - 3 special grenades; no smoke(Giving you three extra specials is nice, however I find that one is sufficient considering you won't be having to many large groups of enemies rushing you, or rushing into many enemy filled rooms.)

- Bandolier - Extra ammunition magazines(I have to tell you, this is my personal favorite for being a sniper. I don't die often, so running out of ammo is just a headache. If you are doing your job right, this should give you enough ammo for the whole match hands down.)

- Frag x 3 - Carry 3 fragmentation grenades(Heh, always a heavy favorite with the run-n-gunners, throwing three bombs at a time can cause damage. However for a sniper I don't see this perk being something that is needed to our lifestyle. Unless I suppose you are a run-n-gun sniper!)

Category 2 Perks:
- Juggernaut - Increased health(Always a plus to give you that little extra health to get you away to freedom. I find this perk almost useless for the fact of if you are getting shot where you are no longer concealed. That little extra health does close to nothing.)

- Sleight of Hand - Faster reloading(Now this has always been a huge debate for me, but I find this perk almost 50/50. I can see where it comes in handy as a bolt-action shooter. Me on the other hand I think I have used it maybe in two games?)

- Sonic Boom - Higher explosive weapon damage(Never use it.)

- Stopping Power - Increased bullet damage(I think this is the top perk I use for being a sniper. It will award you almost a one shot one kill with the .50 cal every time. This little baby is my favy!)

- Double Tap - Increased rate of fire(LMG's love it, snipers really don't need it. I have seen it on a few snipers however if you need to increase your rate of fire on a weapon that you only need one shot to kill someone. You may be doing something wrong.)

- UAV Jammer - Undetectable on enemy radar(UAV Jammer I use a lot as well on team hardcore maps, as well as search and destory maps. Nothing make people more mad then not knowing where you are hiding.)

- Overkill - Carry two primary weapons—no pistol (Now here is another one I have come to enjoy for certain occasions. The ability to work with a second weapon. Many people love to double up a rifle with a shotgun, or an assault rifle for the close encounters.)

Category 3 Perks:
- Deep Impact - Deeper bullet penetration(Here is one that many people love as a sniper, however I really don't use it that often considering I am worried about people in the open, in windows, hiding behind things. Many time I can see just enough of someone to make them regret taking cover and not just running.)

- Extreme Conditioning - Sprint for longer distances(I have to say that come can argue that this is a good one to have, I think that the only reason I would see this as a benefit is out-running everyone, setting up camp, and working people in the open. I used it on downpour a few times for great success.)

- Last Stand - Pull out your pistol and fire back before dying; suicide is optional(This one I don't use as a sniper, because I find the other perks better than using this one. Although it is funny to take a few people with ya!)

- Martyrdom - Drop a live grenade when killed(I am anti-Martyrdom, so I don't use it, don't care, won't argue.)

- Steady Aim - Increased hip-fire accuracy(If you can deal with not having a few perks and using this combined with overkill, this one isn't that uncommon for snipers. I suggest not shooting from the hip with an r700, but to each his own.)

- Dead Silence - Movements make less noise(I can see where this would make a lot of sense to some people, however there aren't many maps I find myself using this on as a sniper. If you are close enough to the enemy to be heard you are doing you job wrong.)

- Iron Lungs - Hold your breath longer for steadier sniper shots(This is an easy one, this was made for the sniper class. Yet I don't find myself using it often unless I know I am up against a team who loves to zig-zag and run. I usually find the holding the breathe thing works fine without using iron lungs. Maybe i'm just quick enough. However it is a great perk for snipers.)

- Eavesdrop - Hear enemy voice chat (I don't know anyone who uses this like it was going out of style. However I believe it only works if you are close enough to the enemy. So once again, if you are that close, you are probably too close to be doing your job correctly.

My Choices

Perks Class 1 - Claymore / Bandolier
I find these as the best two choices for myself.

Perks Class 2 - Sleight of Hand / Stopping Power / UAV Jammer / Overkill
Each of these offer what I need on certain maps.

Perks Class 3 - Deep Impact / Steady Aim / Iron Lungs
Again, Each of these offer what I look for on every map.

Figure Out Your Style: So many times do I see snipers hiding in positions and trying to kill people, then I see them again down the road and they changed their style. I firmly believe in focusing on your technique, and learning from what you did wrong. Unless you are sitting in the middle of the road trying to shoot people with a sniper rifle, you are already doing something right. Don't become discouraged if what starting off you die a lot. Stick with it, and soon you will be that "pain in the ***" the other team hates.

P3S: No not PS3 spelled wrong, P3S is a term I like to use for "Pick Three Spots." Each map try to find three spots that allows you to dispatch the enemy without giving notice to your location.

Know Your Maps: Each map offers many different areas to snipe from, just because you aren't in the IMMEDIATE action, doesn't mean the action won't start coming your way. You will have to learn to get a feel from the other team. I notice a lot of times snipers in positions that are generic "sniper positions" trust me when I tell you this, people know where you are in these spots. Try to find original spots, and be sure not to "camp" if you are playing a game that allows kill cam. Try to rotate. Remember to use P3S.

Clans Help: I think finding a clan was the best thing I have ever done. When you are a rogue sniper, you find yourself on the respawn screen a lot. Why? Because no one communicates that you are coming to get whacked, or tells you which way they are pushing the enemy. I enjoy my clan because they communicate so well that I know almost every time where the enemy is going to come from and I am able to anticipate when to shoot.

Keep Tucked: When you find a position, try to focus the task at hand and keep yourself in cover as much as possible. I know this seems like a dumb tip, however when I am able to see 1/18th of your helmet in my sites I consider you dead. So be sure to find positions that can cover you more than you cover them.

Don't Over-lead: A lot of people that I watch play are trying to lead an opponent that is running. Fortunately for everyone on this game you don't need to lead the bullets so they will meet your enemy. You can lead them a little bit, but I find that once you get them in the cross-hair don't hesitate and pull the trigger.

Don't Focus on Headshots: Headshots as a sniper will come, I promise, but if you focus on trying to get them throughout the whole game you are done for. 1. Unless you are REALLY good and hit the headshots, you will run out of ammo quickly. 2. If you miss you have to fire again, if you miss again you have to fire again, if you miss again you are dead.

Learn to Adapt: As a sniper you get to see the world from a distance, which thus allows you to adapt faster than your infantry run-n-gun friends. If you see on the HUD enemy stragglers are trying to flank your team, then move into a position that lets you intercept them, or lets you cover your mates.

Respect: The last free tip I am going to give is respect. Respect everything you do. Snipers are the ones who channel themselves into a single moment and relieves the world of another un-expecting victim. Your job is to kill at a distance, not get into a lobby and start gloating because you had 0 deaths and XX amount of kills. Also respect that you aren't the best sniper in the game, you will always be second to someone because that is just how life works. Respect yourself, don't become discouraged or frustrated because you are struggling, this is only a game, and I promise if you practice you will become good.

Re: COD4 Sniper Handbook

i really enjoy sniping levels such as cross fire and wet work. there are others but i think these are best for fire positions and getting dug in with your backside covered with clay mores. on other levels i tend to use an M4 or mp5 and run round like a frantic chicken. your tutorial is very good and will help a lot of sniper newcomers. i get the impression you have served in the forces as a sniper. i have always wanted too but missed my chance. now im stuck in a steady career with a good pension, house, girlfriend and daughter. maybe i'll get in RMR one day when i get time on my hands.

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